Last area Publix stores close at 2 p.m. as residents hunker down

A uniformed sheriff’s deputy oversaw water supplies for last-minute sale at Crestwood Publix on Southern Boulevard in Royal Palm Beach before the last of the chain’s area supermarkets closed at 2 p.m. ahead of Hurricane Matthew.

Many other businesses, from markets to fast-food restaurants, had already shut their doors.

Drivers battled intermittent rain. Winds gusts up to 33 mph are expected in the western communities this afternoon, rising to 75 mph by midnight.